Texas Christian University gave former football coach Gary Patterson a nearly $11.5 million separation payment in 2021 after what the school termed a “mutually agreed”-upon parting in late October of that year, the school’s new federal tax returns show.

The document – provided by the school on Tuesday in response to a request from USA TODAY Sports – showed that Patterson’s total compensation for the 2021 calendar year was just over $17.2 million.

That amount included nearly $4.85 million in what the school reported as base compensation. The school announced Patterson’s departure on Oct. 31, 2021.

The new tax record states that Patterson received a “lump sum (separation) payment of $11,449,656” in 2021. The document did not address whether he was to receive additional payments in 2022 or beyond. On Wednesday, a university spokesperson confirmed that it was a one-time payment that was not recurrinmg.

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Three public-school head coaches who were fired during the 2021 season also contractually were owed eight-figure buyouts as of their termination dates: LSU’s Ed Orgeron (nearly $17 million), Florida’s Dan Mullen ($12 million) and Washington’s Jimmy Lake ($10.5 million).

Jerry Kill replaced Patterson on an interim basis for the remainder of the 2021 season. Patterson’s full-time successor, Sonny Dykes, led the Horned Frogs to last season’s College Football Playoff national championship game, in which they were defeated by Georgia.

Patterson had tremendous success over the full run of his more than 20 years as TCU’s head coach. He compiled a 181-79 record and won or shared six conference championships, as the school moved from the Western Athletic Conference, to Conference USA, to the Mountain West, then to the Big 12. His 2010 team finished 13-0, including a victory in the Rose Bowl, and ended up ranked No. 2 in the nation.

In his last three full seasons, the Horned Frogs were 18-17. They were 3-5 overall (1-4 Big 12 play) when his departure was announced in a statement from athletics director Jeremiah Donato that said in part:

“The story of Gary Patterson and the rise in the fortunes of the TCU football program over the last 20 years is clearly one of the most remarkable in the history of college football. We are grateful to Gary and Kelsey Patterson and appreciate everything they have meant to TCU and the Fort Worth community. Under his leadership, TCU has become a nationally recognized brand name in football and in collegiate athletics.

“Chancellor (Victor) Boschini and I met with Coach Patterson today and mutually agreed that the time has come for a new voice and leadership in our football program. We asked him to continue on as our head coach for the remainder of the season, and take on a different role in 2022, but he believed it was in the team's and TCU's best interests to begin the transition immediately.”

As a private school, TCU is not required to make its employment contracts public. It is set up as a private, non-profit organization. Under IRS rules, such entities must report compensation data based on the calendar year completed during the fiscal year covered by the return — in TCU's case, a fiscal year ending May 31, 2022.

Patterson spent the past season as a special assistant to Texas football coach Steve Sarkisian. It announced in March he was leaving that position.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Gary Patterson received TCU separation payment of $11.5 million in 2021